Planning your next heist and looking for a massive payout? We’ve got you covered if you’re looking for the best heist for money in Payday 3.
Payday 3 is the ultimate “cops & robbers” experience for gamers, especially those who have seen one too many heist movies. Gather your crew of diverse abilities and skills, plan the heist, and get out scott-free for a massive profit. You’ll then be able to use your ill-gotten gains to finance better equipment and spiffy cosmetics. However, that begs the question – which heists can net you the most profit for the least effort? We’ve got some suggestions, so keep reading.
Which heists to do in Payday 3 for the most money?
This question is more nuanced than it appears on the surface. There are several considerations to take into account when determining the answer. For example, are you playing solo, in a small team, or even in a full team of four? How far down the equipment and skill progression are you? How well-versed are you with the heist mechanics of Payday 3? All of this needs to be taken into account before determining the best heist to get money in the game.
Going by sheer numbers, there are two heists that can net you a massive amount of money if done correctly. Those are Under the Surphaze and Gold & Shark, which both max out at $1,300,000 on Overkill difficulty. However, this is hardly the most economical or certain way of getting money compared to time investment.
How to determine the fastest way to get money in Payday 3?
This largely depends if you’re playing solo or in a well-oiled group. The more friends you have doing their part, the quicker and more efficient you can be during the heists. And the faster you’re done with a heist, the faster you can get into the next one to grab more cash.
For that reason, it’s best to pick quick heists with a decent profit. Then, go for a lower difficulty to get in and out as fast as possible. Some good examples include:
- Road Rage on Hard difficulty: around $400,000 profit on average in about 15 minutes.
- Dirty Ice on Hard difficulty: around $250,000 profit on average in about 10 minutes.
- 99 Boxes on Hard difficulty: around $500,000 profit on average in about 18 minutes.
As you can see, the Hard difficulty represents the sweet spot between profit and time efficiency. You can go for a higher difficulty level, but that could easily result in a bust and more time spent, while also requiring a crew that knows what they’re doing.
All profit ranges in Payday 3 across all difficulties
To give you a full perspective of what you can expect from various missions, we have a handy table of all heists and their net profits across all difficulty levels. You can use this list to determine which heists to try out next. As a rule of thumb, the larger the profit margin, the longer or more complex the heist.
| Heist | Normal | Hard | Very Hard | Overkill |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No Rest for the Wicked | $100,000 – $300,000 | $120,000 – $350,000 | $150,000 – $450,000 | $170,000 – $500,000 |
| Road Rage | $200,000 – $500,000 | $250,000 – $600,000 | $300,000 – $700,000 | $350,000 – $850,000 |
| Dirty Ice | $50,000 – $300,000 | $60,000 – $350,000 | $70,000 – $450,000 | $80,000 – $500,000 |
| Rock the Cradle | $100,000 – $600,000 | $120,000 – $700,000 | $150,000 – $900,000 | $170,000 – $1,000,000 |
| Under the Surphaze | $400,000 – $800,000 | $500,000 – $950,000 | $600,000 – $1,200,000 | $700,000 – $1,300,000 |
| Gold & Sharke | $400,000 – $800,000 | $500,000 – $900,000 | $600,000 – $1,000,000 | $700,000 – $1,300,000 |
| 99 Boxes | $300,000 – $600,000 | $350,000 – $700,000 | $450,000 – $900,000 | $500,000 – $1,000,000 |
| Touch the Sky | $200,000 – $500,000 | $250,000 – $700,000 | $300,000 – $900,000 | $350,000 – $1,000,000 |
If you’re looking for more Payday 3 guides, look no further and check out Payday 3 Weapons List – What Guns are in Payday 3 and Does Payday 3 Have a Campaign.